Wireless communication controlled battery charging station

ABSTRACT

An electronic device sends a wireless signal to a charging station indicating that charging of a battery of the electronics device is to commence. The electronic device generates a profile representing characteristics of the battery during charging. The electronic device sends a wireless signal to the charging station indicating the first type of charging is to be applied to the battery. The electronic device responds to a determination that charging of the battery is to continue by determining a second type of charging to be applied to the battery. The electronic device determines whether charging of the battery is to continue. In response to a determination that charging of the battery is not to continue, the electronic device sends a wireless signal to the charging station indicating that charging of the battery is to cease.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of rechargeablebatteries, and more particularly to control of battery charging usingwireless communication.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Most battery charging devices provided with electronics devices, such asmobile phones and laptop computers, provide a fixed voltage source torecharge batteries. The required voltage and current profile forcharging the battery is, in general, provided by electronic circuits,either within the charging device itself or within the battery. Thisallows flexibility in the choice of chargers and also serves to protectthe device from potential damage from the use of inappropriate chargers.

Recently, there has been a move toward the use of wireless batterycharging devices. Most wireless mobile charging solutions rely oninductive coupling. With inductive coupling, the charging station takesthe form of a mat or other flat surface. Inside the mat are one or moreinductive coupling coils. The mat itself is connected to an externalsource of power that is used to recharge the battery. Since theelectricity coming to most homes is alternating current, the matprovides the electricity the coils need to generate a changing magneticfield. In some instances, a special case or attachment is connected tothe electronics device to take advantage of this magnetic field and hasa matching coil for the inductor coils. The electronics device is placedon the charging surface such that the coils overlap. The inductor coilsinside the mat generates the magnetic field, which induces a flow ofelectricity inside the matching coil. This electricity then rechargesthe battery of the electronics device.

Another approach used by wireless battery charging devices utilizesconductive charging mats to transfer power when charging a battery.Conductive charging mats create a direct electric circuit between amobile device and a charging surface. Typically, the surface of thecharging device has strips of electrically conductive material embeddedin it such that when a electronics device with corresponding electricalcontacts touches these strips of metal, electricity flows into thebattery of the electronics device.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present invention provide a computer program productto charge a battery. An electronic device determines whether a type ofthe battery is indicated. The electronic device responds to adetermination that the type of the battery is not indicated byinitiating a test of the battery to determine the type of the battery.The electronic device generates a profile representing characteristicsof the battery during charging based, at least in part, on a result ofthe test. The profile of the battery is matched to a pre-existingprofile to determine the type of the battery. The electronic devicesends a wireless signal to a charging station indicating that chargingof a battery of the electronic device is to commence using a first typeof charging. The electronic device sends a wireless signal to thecharging station indicating the first type of charging is to be appliedto the battery based, at least in part, on a determined amount ofcharging to be applied to the battery. The electronic device determineswhether charging of the battery using the first type of charging of isto continue based on at least one of i) a type of charging being appliedto the battery and ii) a threshold being exceeded, wherein the thresholdis configured for at least one of a temperature of the battery, avoltage of the battery, an electrical current of the battery, or aresistance of the battery. The electronic device responds to adetermination that charging of the battery using the first type ofcharging is not to continue by sending a wireless signal to the chargingstation indicating that charging of the battery using the first type ofcharging is to cease. The electronic device determines whether chargingof the battery is to continue based on at least one of a measuredtemperature of the battery, a measured voltage of the battery, ameasured electrical current of the battery, or a measured electricalresistance of the battery. The electronic device responds to adetermination that charging of the battery is to continue by determininga second type of charging to be applied to the battery, based, at leastin part, on the profile representing characteristics of the batteryduring charging, wherein the second type of charging is indicated by thewireless signal sent to the charging station. The electronic devicesends a wireless signal to the charging station indicating the secondtype of charging is to be applied to the battery based, at least inpart, on a determined amount of charging to be applied to the battery.The electronic device determines whether charging of the battery usingthe second type of charging of is to continue based on at least one ofi) a type of charging being applied to the battery and ii) a thresholdbeing exceeded. The threshold is configured for at least one of atemperature of the battery, a voltage of the battery, an electricalcurrent of the battery, or a resistance of the battery. The electronicdevice responds to a determination that charging of the battery usingthe second type of charging is not to continue by sending a wirelesssignal to the charging station indicating that charging of the batteryusing the second type of charging is to cease.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating a battery chargingenvironment, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 illustrates operational processes of a control program, executingon an electronics device within the environment of FIG. 1, in accordancewith an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates operational processes of a charging program,executing on a charging station within the environment of FIG. 1, inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 depicts a block diagram of components of the electronics deviceexecuting the control program and the charging station executing thecharging program, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

While solutions to control the charging of a battery of the electronicsdevice are known they often require a physical or wired connection to doso. In some solutions, the battery charging device is configured to stopcharging a battery once an amount of resistance is detected. Suchbattery charging devices normally incorporate some form of voltageregulation to control the charging voltage applied to the battery, toprevent overcharging of the battery. Many different charging andtermination schemes have been developed for different batterychemistries and different applications. To control the point at whichbattery charging is terminated, several methods are commonly employed.

The first commonly employed method is a trickle charging method in whicha small current charge (e.g., 0.05-0.1 coulomb) is applied to thebattery at a constant voltage over a prolonged period of time, oftenranging from 5-15 hours. Trickle charging means charging a fully chargedbattery under no-load at a rate equal to its self-discharge rate, thusenabling the battery to remain at its fully charged level. A relatedform of charging is float (or maintenance) charging. A simple definitionof float charging is that voltage is continuously applied to the batteryterminals. Typically, the amplitude of that voltage varies between 0.2volts and 0.6 volts above the rest state voltage of the battery when itis fully charged. The purpose of continuous float charging is tomaintain the battery in a fully charged condition so that when it iscalled into service, the battery will be able to deliver its full chargecapacity. For lead-acid batteries under no-load float charging, i.e.,the battery is not being used while it is being charged, tricklecharging is achieved naturally at the end of charge, when the lead-acidbattery takes in a trickle charge to keep itself fully charged. Thetrickle charging then equals the energy expended by the lead-acidbattery in splitting the water in the electrolyte into hydrogen andoxygen gases. Other battery technologies, such as the lithium-iontechnology, are highly intolerant to over-charging, and cannot be floatcharged without an external battery management system.

The second method is to monitor the change in voltage across the batteryterminals using a voltage sensor. As the battery is charged the voltagerises until full charge is reached. Once full charge is reached thevoltage across the battery terminals begins to drop (herein callednegative delta voltage (NDV), where delta indicates change) due topolarization inside the cells of the battery, which starts to occur oncea cell is fully charged. At this point the cells enter the overchargedanger zone and the temperature of the battery begins to rise rapidlysince the chemical changes are complete and the excess electrical energyis converted into heat by the cells. In general, the rate of change ofvoltage with respect to time (dV/dt) is monitored and charging isstopped when this becomes zero, but this runs the risk of prematurecutoffs. With this method, a much higher charging rate can be used thanwith the trickle method to charge at up to 1 C. At this charge rate, thecutoff NDV is approximately 5-10 mV per cell of the battery. Since thismethod measures the voltage across the battery, a constant current(rather than a constant voltage) charging circuit must be used. This isunlike a lead-acid battery cell for example, which can, in theory, bemore easily charged at a suitably chosen constant voltage. The voltagedrop occurs regardless of the discharge level or ambient temperature andit can therefore be detected and used by a battery charging device toidentify the peak in voltage of the battery, and hence to cut offcharging when the battery has reached its full charge. This method isnot suitable for charging currents less than 0.5 C (coulomb) sincechanges in voltage becomes difficult to detect. False NDV can occur atthe start of the charge with excessively discharged cells. This is oftenovercome by using a timer to delay the detection of NDV to avoid thisproblem. Lead acid batteries do not demonstrate a voltage drop on chargecompletion hence this charging method is not suitable for sealed leadacid (SLA) batteries.

Nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries do not demonstrate such apronounced NDV voltage drop when they reach the end of the chargingcycle and so the NDV cut off method is not reliable for ending a NiMHbattery charge. Instead, many battery charging devices sense the rate ofincrease of the battery temperature per unit time (dT/dt, indicatingchange in Temperature/change in time). When a predetermined rate (dT/dt)is reached, rapid charging at rates (0.5-1.0 C) is stopped and thecharge method is switched to the trickle charge method. Because extendedtrickle charging can damage a NiMH battery, the use of a timer toregulate the total charging time is often recommended.

A constant-current constant-voltage (CC/CV) controlled charge method isoften used for charging Lithium and some other batteries, which may bevulnerable to damage if the upper voltage limit is exceeded. Theconstant current charging rate specified by a manufacturer is themaximum charging rate which the battery can tolerate without damagingthe battery. Special precautions are often needed to maximize thecharging rate and to ensure that the battery is fully charged, while atthe same time avoiding overcharging. For this reason, it is typicallyrecommended that a battery charging device switch charging methods fromconstant-current to constant voltage charging before the cell voltagereaches its upper limit for that battery. Note that this implies thatchargers for Lithium Ion battery cells must be capable of controllingboth the charging current and the charging voltage, requiring sensorsand devices for both.

Embodiments of the present invention recognize that with the advent ofwireless chargers the battery voltage, current and temperature datarequired by many battery charging systems, to prevent overcharging ofbatteries, is not readily accessible to such battery charging systems.Embodiments of the present invention provide one or more of batteryvoltage, current and temperature data as required by many chargingsystems, without the use of wired communication connections betweenelectronic devices and charging stations. Embodiments of the presentinvention provide an application installed on an electronic device thatcommunicates wireles sly with the charging station to control thecharging of the battery of that electronic device. An embodiment of thepresent invention provides a charging attachment that is connected tothe electronic device that includes one or all of a) the application, b)the sensors to determine at least one of the battery voltage, current ortemperature data, and c) an electrical power system to transferelectrical power to the battery. An embodiment of the present inventionprovides a charging attachment that stops the charging of the battery ofelectronic device once a predefined battery charge has been reached. Anembodiment of the present invention provides a charging station thatwirelessly receives and processes commands from an electronic device tocontrol charging of the battery of that electronic device.

The present invention will now be described in detail with reference tothe Figures.

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating a battery chargingenvironment, generally designated 100, in accordance with one embodimentof the present invention. Battery charging environment 100 includescharging station 110 and electronics device 120 connected over wirelessnetwork 130. Charging station 110 includes charging program 115 andwireless transceiver 116. Consumer electronics device 120 includessensors 123, battery 124, control program 125 and wireless transceiver126.

In general, charging station 110 is configured to wirelessly transmitenergy to electronics device 120 to charge battery 124 and electronicsdevice 120 is configured to receive that transmitted energy. Together,charging station 110 and electronics device 120 comprise a batterycharging system. For example, if electronics device 120 utilizesinductive coupling to charge battery 124, then charging station 110 hasa complementary coil and power system that generates the changingmagnetic field to transmit energy to the complementary coil ofelectronics device 120. In some embodiments, such complementarystructures are included as part of an attachment connected toelectronics device 120 and/or charging station 110. In some embodiments,one or more of sensors 123, battery 124, control program 125, wirelesstransceiver 126, charging program 115 and wireless transceiver 116 areincluded in respective attachments connected to electronics device 120and/or charging station 110, further respectively. In a chargingscenario where battery 124 is being charged, electronics device 120 iswithin a proximity to charging station 110 such that power istransmitted from charging station 110 and is received by electronicsdevice 120. In some embodiments, such a proximity varies with the typeof wireless power transfer technology respectively used by chargingstation 110 and electronics device 120.

In this exemplary embodiment, charging program 115 and control program125 are respectively stored on charging station 110 and electronicsdevice 120. However, in other embodiments, one or both of chargingprogram 115 and control program 125 are stored externally, in whole orin part, and are accessed through a communication network, such asnetwork 130. Network 130 can be, for example, a local area network(LAN), a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, or a combinationof the two, and may include wired, wireless, fiber optic or any otherconnection known in the art. In general, network 130 can be anycombination of connections and protocols that will supportcommunications between charging program 115, wireless transceiver 116,control program 125, wireless transceiver 126, charging station 110 andelectronics device 120, in accordance with a desired embodiment of thepresent invention.

In general, wireless transceiver 126 and wireless transceiver 116 allowwireless communication between charging station 110 and electronicsdevice 120. In various embodiments, wireless transceiver 126 andwireless transceiver 116 utilize one or more of: radio communication,microwave communication, for example long-range line-of-sight via highlydirectional antennas, or short-range communication, free-space opticalcommunication (FSO) communication, which uses light propagating in freespace to wirelessly transmit data, sonic communication, includingultrasonic short range communication, which involves the transmissionand reception of sound, and electromagnetic induction short rangecommunication. In general, wireless transceiver 126 and wirelesstransceiver 116 utilize a form of wireless communication and anaccompanying data/signal format to provide wireless communicationbetween charging program 115 and control program 125.

In various embodiments of the present invention, electronics device 120is a portable electronic device that can be a standalone device, alaptop computer, a tablet computer, a netbook computer, a smartphone, ahandheld video game console or another portable electronic device knownin the art. In another embodiment, electronics device 120 represents acomputing system utilizing clustered computers and components to act asa single pool of seamless resources. In general, electronics device 120can be any computing device or a combination of devices with access tosensors 123, battery 124, control program 125 and wireless transceiver126 and is capable of both executing control program 125 and ofreceiving power from charging station 110 to charge battery 124. In someembodiments, electronics device 120 includes internal and externalhardware components, as depicted and described in further detail withrespect to FIG. 4.

In various embodiments of the present invention, charging station 110 isa battery charging station that is configured to provide power towirelessly charge battery 124 of electronics device 120. In someembodiments, charging station 110 utilizes inductive coupling to providepower to wirelessly charge the battery of electronics device 120. Insome embodiments, charging station 110 utilizes conductive charging matsto create a direct electric circuit between electronics device 120 and acharging surface of charging station 110. In one embodiment, such acharging surface has strips of electrically conductive material embeddedin the charging surface such that when electronics device 120 touchesthese strips of metal, electricity flows into battery 124. In general,charging station 110 can be any charging device or a combination ofcharging and computing devices with access to charging program 115 andwireless transceiver 116 and are capable of both executing chargingprogram 115 and of transmitting power to electronics device 120 tocharge battery 124. In some embodiments, charging station 110 includesinternal and external hardware components, as depicted and described infurther detail with respect to FIG. 4.

In an embodiment, charging station 110 includes charging program 115. Ingeneral, charging program 115 responds to the commands sent by controlprogram 125 to regulate charging of battery 124. In some embodiments,charging program 115 is hardwired into an electronic circuit incommunication with wireless transceiver 116. In other embodiments,charging program 115 is stored on a memory of charging station 110 andis accessed and executed using internal and external hardwarecomponents, as depicted and described in further detail with respect toFIG. 4.

In an embodiment, electronics device 120 includes control program 125.Control program 125 receives data from sensors 123, which monitor thecharge of or charging of battery 124. In an embodiment, in general,battery 124 is a rechargeable battery with known chargingcharacteristics. Control program 125 includes a number of known profilesfor a variety of batteries. Control program 125 uses these profiles toidentify the type of battery represented by battery 124 and selects acharging profile to match the identified type. For example, if battery124 is a sealed lead acid battery, then control program 125 wouldidentify the type of battery as a sealed lead acid battery and select acharging profile to match.

In some instances, control program 125 communicates with electronicdevice 120 and retrieves data identifying the type of batteryrepresented by battery 124. In other cases, control program 125 executesa test based on a partial charge of battery 124 to identify the type ofbattery 124. For example, control program 125 executes a short rechargeof battery 124 in which control program 125 causes charging station 110to vary the voltage used for charging over a range with a constantcurrent followed by a constant voltage with a varied electrical current.During the test, control program 125 uses sensors 123 to monitor thecharacteristics of battery 124, e.g., changes in voltage across theterminals, change in temperature, electrical resistance etc. Controlprogram 125 uses these characteristics to generate a charging profilefor battery 124 and matches this profile to a profile included incontrol program 125, thereby identifying the type of battery 124.

In an embodiment, sensors 123 monitor one or more of: voltage,electrical current (also called amperage when current is measured inamperes), electrical resistance, temperature or another characteristic,as is known to those skilled in the art, of battery 124. In general,control program 125 uses the data generated by sensors 123 to determinecommands to send to charging program 115 to control the charging ofbattery 124. In one embodiment, control program 125 is, at least inpart, included as part of a protocol stack that is an implementation ofa computer networking protocol suite. Such protocol stacks include oneor more protocols and layers to pass signals from control program 125 tocharging program 115.

In one embodiment, control program 125 uses a peripheral device, such asthe flash of a camera included in electronics device 120, to send asignal to charging program 115. In such an embodiment, charging station110 includes a sensor that detects the signal from the peripheraldevice, e.g., a light sensor, and changes the charging of battery 124 inaccordance to the received signal. For example, control program 125activates a camera flash of electronics device 120 three times with theflashes spaced one second apart. In one such embodiment, a lightdetector, included as part of charging station 110, receives the flashesof light and sends the signals to charging program 115. Charging program115 matches the signal pattern to an index of charging commands anddetermines that the signal indicates that charging of battery 124 is tobe conducted using a trickle method governed by a timer. As such,charging station initiates a charging of battery 124 using the tricklemethod and, once the time period has elapsed, ceases further charging.

In another embodiment, electronics device 120 uses a screen display,e.g., a screen on a smartphone, to communicate with charging station110. In one such embodiment, electronics device 120 uses the screen todisplay a pattern or sequence of patterns to charging station 110. Aswith the pervious embodiment, charging station 110 includes a sensorconfigured to detect signals from electronics device 120, e.g., acamera, which detects the signals from the screen of electronics device120, and passes those signals to charging program 115. Charging program115 matches the signal pattern to an index and determines the chargingto be applied to recharge battery 124. Such patterns could be barcodes,color patterns or a sequence of pictures that are recognized by chargingprogram 115.

FIG. 2 illustrates operational processes of control program 125,executing on electronics device 120 within the environment of FIG. 1, inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In determination process 205, control program 125 determines ifelectronics device 120 includes information identifying the type ofbattery that battery 124 belongs to, e.g., a rechargeable nickel-cadmiumbattery. If electronics device 120 does not include informationidentifying the type of battery that battery 124 belongs to(determination process 205, NO branch), then control program 125proceeds to process 210. In process 210, control program 125 identifiesthe type of battery that battery 124 belongs by executing a chargingtest and generates a charging profile based on the results of that test,which is then matched to a pre-existing charging profile included incontrol program 125. Such charging tests include charging and/ordischarging battery 124 at least partly and monitoring one or more ofvoltage, current, temperature and resistance, as would be understood byone skilled in the art. In some embodiments, once control program 125tests a battery and identifies a type of battery of battery 124, controlprogram 125 creates a record of the type of battery of battery 124 andstores that information for use in future charging. If electronicsdevice 120 does include information identifying the type of battery thatbattery 124 belongs to (determination process 205, YES branch), thencontrol program 125 identifies the corresponding pre-existing chargingprofile for that battery type, included in control program 125, inprocess 215. In process 215, control program 125 compares informationidentifying the type of battery of battery 124 to a number of entries ina database, which is included as part of control program 125. Controlprogram 125 matches the information to one of the entries included inthe database and retrieves a pre-existing charging profile that isassociated with that entry. In one embodiment, each entry included insuch a database is associated with a type of battery chemistry, e.g.,lead-acid battery. In addition, the pre-existing charging profile forthat battery type is configured such that the charging of that batterytype will be completed with a minimization of overcharging and/orreduction in degradation of the battery due to charging.

In determination process 220, control program 125 determines whether theamount of charging to be applied to battery 124 is below a threshold.Certain types of batteries, e.g., certain lithium based batteries, aresusceptible to decreased lifespan by unnecessary charging. As such,control program 125 determines whether the current level of charge ofbattery 124 warrants charging as part of determination process 220. Ifthe amount of charging to be applied to battery 124 is below a threshold(determination process 220, YES branch), then control program 125signals charging station 110 indicating that battery 124 is not to becharged, in process 225. For example, in some scenarios the amount ofcharging to be applied to battery 124 is determined to be zero, e.g., inthe case where the battery is fully charged. In such a case, controlprogram 125 signals charging station 110 indicating that battery 124 isnot to be charged.

If the amount of charging to be applied to battery 124 is not below athreshold (determination process 220, NO branch), then control program125 signals charging station 110 indicating that battery 124 is to becharged, in process 230.

In process 235, control program 125 identifies a charging profile to befollowed to recharge battery 124 and sends a signal to charging station110 to indicate the charging profile to be applied when charging battery124. In some scenarios the charging profile to be followed is based onthe type of battery to which battery 124 belongs. In other scenarios,the charging profile to be followed is based on both the type of batteryto which battery 124 belongs as well as the amount of charging that isto be applied to battery 124. For example, control program 125determines the amount of charging to be applied to battery 124 to be anon-zero value that exceeds the threshold, e.g., battery 124 is 15%charged, and battery 124 is determined to be of a lithium type ofbattery. As such, control program 125 signals charging station 110indicating that battery 124 is to be charged according to the chargingprofile for a lithium type of battery that is in a low charge state. Assuch the charging profile applied takes into account the type of batteryas well as the amount of charge required to bring the battery above athreshold.

In process 240, control program 125 initiates charging of battery 124via wireless transceiver 126. To charge battery 124, control program 125sends a signal, using wireless transceiver 126, to charging station 110,initiating the execution of the charging profile to be followed tocharge battery 124. In determination process 245, control program 125determines whether to stop the charging of battery 124 based on the databeing output by sensors 123. If control program 125 determines to stopthe charging of battery 124 based on the data being output by sensors123 (determination process 245, YES branch), then control program 125sends a signal to charging station 110 indicating that charging activityis to stop, in process 250. For example, in response to the data beingoutput by sensors 123 indicating that charging of battery 124 iscomplete or is to cease due to a problem in the charging of battery 124,control program 125 sends a signal to charging station 110 indicatingthat charging activity is to stop. If control program 125 determines notto stop the charging of battery 124 based on the data being output bysensors 123 (determination process 245, NO branch), then control program125 returns to process 230 and sends a signal to charging station 110indicating that charging activity is to continue, i.e., is to becharged. For example, the data being output by sensors 123 indicatesthat charging of battery 124 is not complete and, as a result, controlprogram 125 continues to send signals to charging station 110 indicatingthat battery 124 is to be charged using charging profile X.

In some embodiments, by returning to process 230, control program 125dynamically changes the charging profile being applied to charge battery124 based on the data being output by sensors 123. For example, battery124 is brought up to 70% charge using charging profile A and thenbrought to full charge using charging profile B. In certain embodiments,the use of multiple charging profiles allows for a more timely andefficient charge with reduced degradation of battery 124.

In one embodiment, control program 125 also includes the capability tostop the flow of electricity charging battery 124 in the event thatcharging station 110 does not respond to signals indicating thatcharging activity is to stop. In one embodiment, control program 125also includes the capability to stop the flow of electricity chargingbattery 124 in the event that charging station 110 malfunctions. Forexample, charging station 110 applies an undesirable charging profile tocharge battery 124.

FIG. 3 illustrates operational processes of charging program 115,executing on charging station 110 within the environment of FIG. 1, inaccordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In process 305, charging program 115 monitors the signals from controlprogram 125 via wireless transceiver 116. In determination process 310,charging program 115 determines if the signals indicate that charging ofbattery 124 is to commence. If the signals indicate that charging ofbattery 124 is not to commence (determination process 310, NO branch),then charging program 115 returns to process 305.

If the signals indicate that charging of battery 124 is to commence(determination process 310, YES branch), then charging program 115identifies a charging profile based on the signals from control program125, in process 315. In process 315, charging program 115 identifies acharging profile to be applied to battery 124 by matching the signalreceived from control program 125 to a list of charging profiles, whichinclude commands that control the power used by charging station 110 tocharge battery 124. Such commands are included as part of chargingprogram 115.

In process 320, charging program 115 executes the commands based on thesignals received from control program 125 according to the chargingprofile that was matched to the signals from control program 125. Suchcommands indicate the voltage and electric current that are to beapplied to battery 124 in order to recharge it.

In decision process 325, charging program 115 determines if a signal hasbeen received from control program 125 indicating that charging activityis to stop. If a signal has not been received from control program 125indicating that charging activity is to stop (decision process 325, NObranch), then charging program 115 returns to process 320 and continuesto execute the commands included in the charging profile. If a signalhas been received from control program 125 indicating that chargingactivity is to stop (decision process 325, YES branch), then chargingprogram 115 ceases to execute the commands included in the chargingprofile in process 330, i.e., charging program 115 ceases to supplyvoltage and electric current to battery 124 in order to recharge it.

FIG. 4 depicts a block diagram of components of electronics device 120executing the control program 125 and charging station 110 executingcharging program 115, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention. It should be appreciated that FIG. 4 provides only anillustration of one implementation and does not imply any limitationswith regard to the environments in which different embodiments may beimplemented. Many modifications to the depicted environment may be made.

Consumer electronics device 120 and charging station 110 respectivelyinclude communications fabric 402, which provides communications betweenfurther respective computer processor(s) 404, memory 406, persistentstorage 408, communications unit 410, and input/output (I/O)interface(s) 412. Communications fabric 402 can be implemented with anyarchitecture designed for passing data and/or control informationbetween processors (such as microprocessors, communications and networkprocessors, etc.), system memory, peripheral devices, and any otherhardware components within a system. For example, communications fabric402 can be implemented with one or more buses.

Memory 406 and persistent storage 408 are computer-readable storagemedia. In this embodiment, memory 406 includes respective random accessmemory (RAM) 414 and cache memory 416. In general, memory 406 caninclude any suitable volatile or non-volatile computer-readable storagemedia.

Control program 125 and charging program 115 are stored in respectivepersistent storage 408 for execution and/or access by one or more of therespective computer processors 404 via one or more memories of memory406. In this embodiment, persistent storage 408 includes a magnetic harddisk drive. Alternatively, or in addition to a magnetic hard disk drive,persistent storage 408 can include a solid state hard drive, asemiconductor storage device, read-only memory (ROM), erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory, or any othercomputer-readable storage media that is capable of storing programinstructions or digital information.

The media used by persistent storage 408 may also be removable. Forexample, a removable hard drive may be used for persistent storage 408.Other examples include optical and magnetic disks, thumb drives, andsmart cards that are inserted into a drive for transfer onto anothercomputer-readable storage medium that is also part of persistent storage408.

Communications unit 410, in these examples, provides for communicationswith other data processing systems or devices, including resources ofnetwork 130. In these examples, communications unit 410 includes one ormore network interface cards. Communications unit 410 may providecommunications through the use of either or both physical and wirelesscommunications links. Control program 125 and charging program 115 maybe downloaded to persistent storage 408 through communications unit 410.

I/O interface(s) 412 allows for input and output of data with otherdevices that may be respectively connected to electronics device 120 andcharging station 110. For example, I/O interface 412 may provide aconnection to external devices 418 such as a keyboard, keypad, a touchscreen, and/or some other suitable input device. External devices 418can also include portable computer-readable storage media such as, forexample, thumb drives, portable optical or magnetic disks, and memorycards. Software and data used to practice embodiments of the presentinvention, e.g., control program 125 and charging program 115, can bestored on such portable computer-readable storage media and can beloaded onto persistent storage 408 via I/O interface(s) 412. I/Ointerface(s) 412 also connect to a display 420.

Display 420 provides a mechanism to display data to a user and may be,for example, a computer monitor, or a television screen.

The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computerprogram product. The computer program product may include a computerreadable storage medium (or media) having computer readable programinstructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of thepresent invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of theorder noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

The programs described herein are identified based upon the applicationfor which they are implemented in a specific embodiment of theinvention. However, it should be appreciated that any particular programnomenclature herein is used merely for convenience, and thus theinvention should not be limited to use solely in any specificapplication identified and/or implied by such nomenclature.

It is to be noted that the term(s) “Smalltalk” and the like may besubject to trademark rights in various jurisdictions throughout theworld and are used here only in reference to the products or servicesproperly denominated by the marks to the extent that such trademarkrights may exist.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer program product to charge a battery,the computer program product comprising: one or more computer-readablestorage media and program instructions stored on the one or morecomputer-readable storage media, the program instructions comprising:program instructions to determine, by an electronic device, whether atype of the battery is indicated; program instructions to respond to adetermination that the type of the battery is not indicated byinitiating, by the electronic device, a test of the battery to determinethe type of the battery; program instructions to generate, by theelectronic device, a profile representing characteristics of the batteryduring charging based, at least in part, on a result of the test,wherein the profile of the battery is matched to a pre-existing profileto determine the type of the battery; program instructions to send, bythe electronic device, a wireless signal to a charging stationindicating that charging of a battery of the electronic device is tocommence using a first type of charging; program instructions to send,by the electronic device, a wireless signal to the charging stationindicating the first type of charging is to be applied to the batterybased, at least in part, on a determined amount of charging to beapplied to the battery; program instructions to determine, by theelectronic device, whether charging of the battery using the first typeof charging of is to continue based on at least one of i) a type ofcharging being applied to the battery and ii) a threshold beingexceeded, wherein the threshold is configured for at least one of atemperature of the battery, a voltage of the battery, an electricalcurrent of the battery, or a resistance of the battery; programinstructions to respond to a determination that charging of the batteryusing the first type of charging is not to continue by sending, by theelectronic device, a wireless signal to the charging station indicatingthat charging of the battery using the first type of charging is tocease; program instructions to determine, by the electronic device,whether charging of the battery is to continue based on at least one ofa measured temperature of the battery, a measured voltage of thebattery, a measured electrical current of the battery, or a measuredelectrical resistance of the battery; program instructions to respond toa determination that charging of the battery is to continue bydetermining, by the electronic device, a second type of charging to beapplied to the battery, based, at least in part, on the profilerepresenting characteristics of the battery during charging, wherein thesecond type of charging is indicated by the wireless signal sent to thecharging station; program instructions to send, by the electronicdevice, a wireless signal to the charging station indicating the secondtype of charging is to be applied to the battery based, at least inpart, on a determined amount of charging to be applied to the battery;program instructions to determine, by the electronic device, whethercharging of the battery using the second type of charging of is tocontinue based on at least one of i) a type of charging being applied tothe battery and ii) a threshold being exceeded, wherein the threshold isconfigured for at least one of a temperature of the battery, a voltageof the battery, an electrical current of the battery, or a resistance ofthe battery; and program instructions to respond to a determination thatcharging of the battery using the second type of charging is not tocontinue by sending, by the electronic device, a wireless signal to thecharging station indicating that charging of the battery using thesecond type of charging is to cease.